Utria Military Challenge Won by Pärnu Team
This year's Utria military endurance competition, held on January 17-18, was won by the second team of the home guard's Pärnu defense district.
Over 30 hours, the 26 squads had to find dropboxes and checkpoints in a 300-square-kilometer area in northeastern Estonia, negotiate a minefield and solve communication and reconnaissance challenges.
Due to the remnants of a low pressure system in the upper atmosphere, the weather was milder by day, but temperatures dropped to -20 C at night.
The event, commemorating an amphibious landing that turned the tide of the War of Independence in January 1919, concluded with a final sprint on Saturday morning.
Utria is the qualifier for participation in the country's premier military endurance event, the Admiral Pitka Recon Challenge held in the summer.